Occupy Nigeria-Day 1

January 9th and the biggest protest Nigeria has seen in response to a government‘s decision is on its way. The turnout to the Lagos protest was impressive, apparently a lot more numerous than even the organizers were expecting. Leaders of the labor unions and other workers associations were all present, taking turns in addressing the crowd, all of them starting with..”Great Nigerian People!!!”.

While everyone was appealing to peaceful protests, the speeches were a tad confusing. Comparisons were made with the recent events that took place in the Arab world, with leaders that have been driven away, or killed, like the case of Gaddafi, associating words like “peaceful protest” and “Revolution”, many at times baring the same meaning ….what was more confusing was the artists’ performances… which usually represents scenes from an electoral campaign rather than a protest.

Just by following the events on tv, it seems to me that the removal of the fuel subsidies is a big part of what is taking place now, but surely not the only one. Corruption, bad government, lack of steady electricity, and so on, issues that have been affecting the country for some time are bringing out frustration and anger buried deep down, which makes the outcome more unpredictable than many were expecting.

Other cities have joined the protest as well, crippling activities nationwide. Majority of national flights as well as a few international ones have been cancelled, prices to any product have doubled, where and if you are actually able to find anything open…

All in all, day 1 of “Occupy Nigeria” is considered to have been a success, even if the government is not showing any signs of backing up from supporting the removal of fuel subsidies.